With U.S. Ground Forces Now Out Of Afghanistan, The U.S. Navy Steps Up

Sailors are on board an MH-60S Seahawk helicopter on the flight deck of aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan in July. Quinton A. Lee/U.S. Navy  

Politico: The U.S. ground war in Afghanistan is over. Now it’s the Navy’s turn. 

Expect aircraft carriers to stay in the Middle East, U.S. officials say, even as the military tries to pivot to China. 

The American military’s involvement in Afghanistan could soon become largely the Navy’s responsibility, an ironic twist for a counterterrorism mission in a landlocked country. 

Although the Navy has long privately bristled at the requirement to deploy one or even two aircraft carriers at a time to the Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf to support the ground fights in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, the lack of U.S.-controlled airfields near Afghanistan could mean more planes taking off from decks at sea. 

And that could set off a fresh round of requests for more funding — and more hand-wringing among those who want the U.S. military to focus more on China.  

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WNU Editor: It is going to be very expensive to keep an aircraft carrier and its support group within striking range of Afghanistan.

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